Battle of Merseburg

The Battle of Merseburg occurred on 2 November 1340 when the forces of King John the Blind of Bohemia defeated Emperor Louis IV's imperial army at Merseburg on the Saale River of Saxony-Anhalt. The Bohemian army, consisting almost entirely of mercenaries, overwhelmed the numerically-inferior imperial army, allowing for the Bohemians to gain the upper hand in their rebellion against Emperor Louis. On 4 January 1341, John was crowned Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire at Aachen Cathedral.